Portage Central's Lea Foerster ducks away from a pitch as Mattawan catcher Erica Espinoza waits for the ball during the teams' May 7 doubleheader. (Paul Morgan | Special to MLive.com file)

Mattawan softball coach Alicia Smith, left, and then-sophomore Allie Havers celebrate their team's state semifinal win over Bay City Western in 2011. (Jill McLane Baker | Special to MLive.com file)

Portage Central softball coach Bernie Christopher

KALAMAZOO, MI – When K.C. Christopher returns from her Grand Valley State University softball team's trip to Salem, Va., for the NCAA Division II national championships, she will begin an internship at Eaton Corporation.

Christopher, an engineering major at GVSU, will be learning under the tutelage of Alicia Smith, who is design supervisor for the Supercharger Division of Eaton.

Smith is also head softball coach at Mattawan. Christopher played softball at rival Portage Central, where her father, Bernie Christopher, is head coach.

For the conspiracy theorists, perhaps a little espionage, right? Of course not, but it's fun to joke about.

"The work space is different than the softball space," Smith said in laughter. "There's nothing at work that she can steal. I don't think there's many secrets anymore (between the Mattawan and Portage Central programs).

"I've got some pictures of some of the players at my office, but I don't think she can get much info."

It's no secret that Division 1 top-ranked Portage Central (27-5) and Mattawan (25-8), honorable mention in the division, have been about as good as it gets in terms of prep softball power during recent seasons. It's also pretty much expected that the winner of the local Division 1 softball district, typically Mattawan or Portage Central, stands a good chance of going deep in the state tournament.

Mattawan cruised to the Division 1 state title in 2011 and nearly won another championship last season, when the Wildcats dropped a 10-inning heartbreaker in the finals. Portage Central advanced to the state semifinals in 2009, when the Mustangs lost a close game to the eventual champion.

"I think (the rivalry has) been going on for a while and it really has picked up in the last few years when both have had really good teams," Bernie Christopher said. "I think it's a friendly rivalry. Away from the field, a lot of the kids are friends. I like their parents, like their kids, like their coaches.

"(Mattawan has) won the big games in the postseason tournament, so you've got to give them credit there. Our goals are to get better every day so we're better today than we were yesterday and just kind of see where that takes us."

Portage Central has been better than Mattawan in head-to-head matchups so far this season. The Mustangs beat then-No. 1 Mattawan (3-2) in the Gull Lake Invitational semifinals on April 27 and swept the Wildcats (3-2 and 6-4) in Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West Division play on May 7.

Portage Central had its way with Mattawan in the regular season last year, too, but the Mustangs were upset by Loy Norrix in the district semifinals. It was Mattawan that went on and represented the area with a deep tournament run.

"(Portage Central has) won the conference how many times? Ever since they've been in the (SMAC) West," Smith said. "Obviously they've got a very good program and obviously a very good history there. But I think (the rivalry) only helps make each other better. Most of the games have been very close – come down to a play or two.

"We both obviously have to win some games to get there (in the district finals)."

Mattawan opens state-tournament play Tuesday with a 4 p.m. pre-district game against host Portage Northern. Winner advances to face Loy Norrix in the 12:30 p.m. district semifinals Saturday, following the first semifinal between Portage Central and Kalamazoo Central at 10 a.m. The district finals game is set for 3 p.m. at Portage Northern.

Smith said that when she started coaching Mattawan in 2001, along with Teri Loher (now Teri Clark), the Wildcats emulated powerful programs at the time: Portage Northern, Kalamazoo Christian and Stevensville Lakeshore. Mattawan upset top-ranked Lakeshore in the Division 2 regional finals that year, then the Wildcats endured a number of "above average" seasons before they progressed to their current state.

The Portage Central program has been a consistent winner since pioneer coach Jean Smith got things going in the early-1970s. The Mustangs have a history of winning conference titles and making deep state-tourney runs.

Youth and travel softball involving the Mattawan and Portage communities have helped the high school programs flourish.

A coach is only as good as his talent, Bernie Christopher said. Both teams certainly have that.

Aside from competing in the rugged SMAC West, both Mattawan and Portage Central load up on tough opponents in the nonconference portion of their schedules. Those teams do not shy from playing each other multiple times in a season, and that includes Lakeshore as well.

Of course, at the end of the day, it's only a game. Smith reached out to a former player about the Eaton internship, and that former player in turn reached out to K.C. Christopher. Additionally, Portage Central's Verduzco plays travel ball in the summer for Mattawan's Smith.

"Alicia's just a really quality person," Bernie Christopher said. "It shows a lot about her that she'd be willing to do that regardless of the competition (between Mattawan and Portage Central). Hopefully all of us see the big picture. It's about the relationships you build that matter the most."